writer/former professional wrestling enthusiast

I’ve Got Stamina (and an AGENT)

I’ve been wanting to write this post for years, long before it became a fact, and now I can officially proclaim:

I have a literary agent!

I will never tire of typing/saying that. It’s especially sweet because of who my agent is. As of January 24, 2017, I am represented by Jess Dallow of Brower Literary Management and I couldn’t be happier.

In early November I sent my materials to the participating Pitch Wars agents who requested from me as well as other agents I was interested in working with. This included Ms. Jess Dallow.

A couple of weeks after receiving my query and first chapter, Jess requested the full manuscript. On January 13, I got that email I’d been craving since the dawn of time, asking if we could speak on the phone about my manuscript.

(Side Note: This email came only four days after a very dark day, during which I sobbed to MLC about my stalled writing career. Nice timing, Universe.)

My phone conversation with Jess went so well, I was absolutely buoyant afterwards. She had some really interesting and smart ideas for edits–things that hadn’t even occurred to me–and she was so easy to talk to. Plus, our Gilmore Girls ships aligned nicely (come at me, Team Luke). Working with Jess felt right.

After informing all the other agents who had my materials I had an offer and giving them time to respond, I signed on the dotted (it wasn’t actually dotted) line!

I’m currently eyeball-deep in revisions based on feedback from Jess and can already see how it’s making my story stronger and more cohesive. I’m so excited to see where my partnership with Jess takes Florence, my future stories, as well as my career.

Florence was the third manuscript I’d queried. The rejections that got me here stung (some hurt more than others). Going on sub with a book means I will probably encounter even more noes (yes, the plural of “no” is “noes” and, yes, it looks like I just made that word up). But as I’ve said before, as long as I’ve got the one-two punch of Hope and Tenacity, I’ll get there.

For now, I twirl like Maria and Wonder Woman (when I’m not busy revising).